Mighty Atoms Save The Daten !

And so onto the next part of the roadmap and Thursday night football to the Cheshire League for a reserves fixture at Culcheth Sports Club. I had been hoping to take in Daten versus Lostock Gralam (the Grey Lambs - yes really !!) earlier in the month but that fell foul of the public/ private lockdown debate, so it's Daten and Broadheath Central tonight.

Daten FC was formed in 1948 and was the football team of British Nuclear Fuels Sports and Social Club, now Culcheth Sports Club. The club's history goes back prior to this as the site was originally an inshore navy depot built in the 1930s known as HMS Ariel, with the football pitches located on what was the parade ground and where the auxiliary buildings were located. Sometimes in exceptionally dry weather the foundations' outlines can be seen.

Daten is derived from Department of Atomic Energy, with an emblem of an atom and their nickname of The Atoms. Home kit is orange, away yellow and green matching the safety colours of BNFL.

The club preliminarily played in local leagues and sourced players from the workforce based nearby or family members before opening up to the community in later years whilst participating in the local Warrington District League. 

The Atoms changed in 1999 with the closing down of British Nuclear Fuels and, with the help of a Sport England grant and a considerable sum raised by club members, the club moved from Daten to Culcheth Sports Club, but the football club decided to retain its name. Promoted at the end of the 2017/18 season, Daten have finished 11th in the past two seasons, and with five points from six games lay 14th (of 17) this time, with early elimination from the post Covid Cup.

Broadheath Central Junior FC was established in 1922, and played in local Saturday and Sunday Leagues for many years before joining the Mid Cheshire League in 1991 and immediately gaining promotion to Division One. Relegated in 1997, Central left the (now) Cheshire League in 2009 for the Altrincham and District Amateur League.

Heath rejoined the Cheshire League in 2016, and moved up from the First Division to the Premier in 2019 after a fiery 1-1 draw with the now defunct Blacon Youth (still extant in Division Two via their Reserve side) in very late May. Eighteen games last time, thirteen points and thirteenth place at curtailment was a disappointment.

This campaign two wins, four draws and a solitary loss in an entertaining clash with Altrincham Reserves left Broadheath in 5th, but Central, unlike the Atoms, progressed in the JB Parker Cup, after a thrilling 5-1 thrashing of GPSO (Greenalls Padgate St Oswalds) in their final group fixture, complete with livewire toddler pitch invasion.... Semi finals now await after a 6-1 drubbing of Winstanley Warriors. The reserves sit rock bottom, with Daten starting to climb the table following back to back victories.

Glorious sunshine and a scenic route through Dunham Massey, via the National Trust property, country pubs the Vine Inn and The Rope and Anchor, Dunham Fishery before I hit Warburton, the Saracen's Head and the toll bridge - 12p I won't see again !! Numberplates tonight are S1 TUP and RAV3N - the latter black naturally ☺

Then into Glazebury, home of The Hugging Table Company (?), before arriving at Culcheth, Little Lions Cattery, left at Culcheth High School and onto Charnock Road. As expected parking is shambolic at the Sports Club...

The club is set back from the road, and supports two football pitches, four tennis courts, a croquet lawn, Legacy bar and Northern Starr Dance & Fitness. The complex is entirely surrounded by residential housing and flats, bar a short area bordered by a petrol station, with Newchurch Parish Church providing musical chimes in the corner.....

The Atoms are in orange and black, Broadheath in red and black stripes and a 'crowd' of 9 endures an abject first half hour. Then an atomic fusion as a long ball is inadvertently flicked on by a Central defender on 32 minutes and the Daten forward beats the onrushing keeper from 35 yards. Thereafter both sides fashion chances, the best of which produces a superb reaction save from the home custodian.

The second period sees Broadheath largely anonymous, and the Atoms miss several chances. Finally they score a second with five minutes to go, a strong, unchallenged header from a corner by the centre half.

Then, in the first minute of injury time, another Atomic break, the hobbling Broadheath keeper saves but the ball loops up and is headed in from a couple of yards to make it 3-0. The away shotstopper goes down, injured again, and the referee blows up, despite the fact we have had ten minutes of stoppages this half....

Alty Hale A Perfect Ten At The BTH (Breightmet Totally Hammered)

And so after last weekend's FA Vase drama between Warrington Rylands 1906 FC and West Auckland Town, with Town, who despite being thrashed 4-0 at North Ferriby in the previous round, progressing due to the Villagers' ineligible player and expulsion in their own farcical version of 'Been To Hull and Back', it's to Urban Road in Altrincham. There stands BTH (Blessed Thomas Holford School), the home of Manchester League First Division Altrincham Hale FC, for another Murray Trophy fixture, with the visitors being Second Division Breightmet United FC.

Altrincham Hale FC was established in 2007 playing in the local Altrincham & District League, before joining the Manchester League Division One in 2017. Immediate relegation was followed by swift promotion as champions in 2018.

11th of 13 in the abandoned 2019/20 season, Alty Hale sat next to bottom at null and voidance last term, having played only three games because of a Covid outbreak at the start of the season - one win and 2 defeats.

Breightmet United was founded in 1880, plying its trade in the Bolton & District Amateur League, West Lancashire League and the Bolton Combination. Indeed United contributed a leather bound West Lancashire League membership book for the 1888/89 season to the National Football Museum.

In 1911 Breightmet reached the first round of the FA Cup, one game away from playing the mighty Arsenal. A narrow 1-0 reverse to Darwen, but the Salmoners were annihilated 10-1 at Highbury - a lucky escape for United ??

1935 saw United buy their Bury Road ground for £453 with the club subsequently joining the Manchester League Division One for the 1990/91 season. Champions in 2003, but relegated in 2009, Breightmet were placed in Division Two for the 2017/18 campaign.

2018/19 was the club's nadir: one draw in 24 games, -2 points following a deduction and a goal difference of -147. 2019/20 produced 5 points from 14 games, but at least in the current aborted season, only commenced following receipt of a Sport England grant which saved the club from extinction, 8th place out of 11 with seven points from seven games was a welcome improvement.

 

A short journey that takes in Canal Side Dog Groomers, Happy Panda, Altrincham Bridge, built 1765, widened 1850, widened (again) 1907 then rebuilt in 1935, and GW Bonson Heated Store Rooms, now home to Tre Ciccio and Yamaha Music School, with registration plates DOO8Y and, remarkably, AVE 1T - fools and their money are soon parted.....

Beyond Farrat Isolevel and then the Sacred Arts Trust brings me to Urban Road and BTH and the 'caged' artificial pitch. Crucially a public footpath runs past the adjacent golf course and secondary school, meaning spectators are allowed - today's attendance, the ultimate in social distancing, is one (we know who you are), although there are cameo appearances from three dog walkers on St Vincent's Primary School playing field on the opposite side in the second half.... Across the way are the changing rooms and Station House looming large at the back.

Altrincham Hale are in green and white stripes, Breightmet in black and white - seemingly wearing a variety of previous seasons' kits with shirt sponsors Bid Group, Riverside Motors, 365 Engines and APC Couriers all on display. No rush to get started either - 1406 sees kick off whilst the missing corner flags are retrieved and put in place.

The porosity of Breightmet's offside trap is soon in evidence, and after a couple of near misses Kyle Old is played through and scores comfortably on 6 minutes. Seven minutes on he benefits again to make it 2-0.

Alty Hale fashion a succession of chances, with Breightmet's only response a free kick from their own half, which the home keeper desperately claws away. Finally, on 33, Charlie Davies shoots home, and four minutes later Old has his hat trick for 4-0 and the half finishes with Lewis Carthew's bullet header to leave the green and whites five up at the interval.

The second period brings no reprieve with home centre half Nathe sweetly tucking home and Old adding another due to some shocking goalkeeping - the ball hitting both posts and then apologetically trickling over the line, both within the first ten minutes.

Then, surprisingly 28 minutes without a goal. Hale hit the underside of the bar but are largely wasteful, whilst United register another shot, all the while with some of their players substituted, changing pitchside and then going to work...

The final seven minutes sees Alty Hale hit ten - Carthew, from more dreadful keeping, a ninth with a sumptuous volley across the keeper, and Carthew's hat trick from a penalty with the last kick of the game (the sole spectator claiming an assist having retrieved the ball and kicked it over the fence back to the penalty taker) - the referee sparing Breightmet from any stoppage time.

Then off to Moss Lane for the second half of Altrincham v Notts County, also an attendance of one, acting as an impromptu external ball boy....